Jet and Ebony to Sell Over 5 Million images from their archives. I can only imagine what great images this collection must have of African-American history.

Johnson Publications of Chicago — the parent company of Jet and Ebony magazines — in hopes of raising $40 million, is selling off its photographic collection that contains more than five million of the most iconic images of African-American life and culture. That the venerable black-owned firm will “monetize valuable assets” reminds me of a saying I first heard from my Georgia farm-raised grandfather: Don’t ever eat your seed corn.

The beginning of my mindful journey to know as much as I could about African-American history, life and culture started when I was ten years old in the form of a photo in Jet magazine. It was September, 1955 when my semi-literate grandfather, who migrated to Harlan County, Kentucky in the early ’20s to work in the coal mines, handed me the issue of Jet with the cover photo and story about Chicago teen, Emmett Till, who was brutally murdered for allegedly whistling at a white woman. For me, and millions of others, young Till’s horrifically disfigured head became the hallmark image of the world that Black Americans in my generation would see and live — and try to change — for a long time to come.

What Is Multimedia Storytelling?

The definition of multimedia: using more than one media to deliver your message. There could be combinations of text, audio, video and graphics. The specific mix will depend on the type of story you want to tell and the approach that will deliver the most impressive outcome.

What is multimedia storytelling?

When getting started with multimedia storytelling, you will need to collect audio files, photographs and video clips. You may even need to create your own videos that will accompany the texts in your hybrid scrapbook.

Multimedia storytelling is a great way to preserve your heritage and to organize the memories and family documents you have. Getting started can be a little bit difficult but it will certainly turn out to be an exciting project.

Tips for Creating a Genealogy Digital Scrapbook

Each family has unique and incredible stories to share with the world. Some of these have emotional value, some could have historical significance. Eager to share these stories with the world? Modern technologies provide chances to take traditional scrapbooking to the next level.

Begin with the Basics

Multimedia storytelling can be very challenging in the beginning – where do you start?

Sit down and list the facts about each family member. Do not analyze – just write down key moments and the years during which these occurred. As you list the facts, you will begin seeing the story unfolding right in front of you.

Use evidence you gathered during the interviews you performed, from family trees, photographs and other facts that give the story some substance. The details can be used to fill the gaps. You can use different types of media to paint a complete picture – this is the big charm of multimedia storytelling.

Use the Right Technology
Creating a digital scrapbook is all about choosing the software that will create the effects and outcome you were looking for.

There are many possibilities you can try. Find digital libraries where you can upload your documents and create photo galleries. While organizing all of that information and evidence, you will come up with even better storytelling ideas.

You can dedicate a blog to your stories or create digital documents available for download. The technical aspects will be relatively easy to master, if you are willing to dedicate a little bit of time and effort to the process.

Whether you are interested in photo restoration, creating digital tributes or tracing your family’s history, digital storytelling is a great possibility to give the old documents and the family stories a new life. Perfect organization is the main secret. Once you get all of your files in order, you will find it easy to put the perfect digital scrapbook together.